From Distress To Salvation
by Spleriia Emperor Splerii
Summary: Renowned Zootopian Athletes Blanko Mancara and Sabrira Growlers were on a flight on route to Hawaii for a sport tournament together but as their trip commences, the flight suddenly turned out for the worse. Unknown for both of them and the others before them, this flight will the very last of it's kind. Rated M for something that matters you strongly and a bit more profound.
1. Chapter 1

_As a famous professional athlete of Zootopia, Blanko Mancara and his snow leopard mate Sabrira Growlera were on route to participate a sport tournament in Hawaii when their aerial trip suddenly turned to disaster._

* * *

In one of Zootopia's most busiest airport, a black panther hailed from the Rainforest District was taking a trip along with his beloved snow leopard partner.

Their names were Blanko Mancara and Sabrira Growlera respectively and both of them were not just ordinary Zootopian predators. Both of them were the renowned professional athletes of Zootopia's Rainforest and Tundratown Districts that were hailed throughout the whole animal kingdom. A lot of Zootopians were idolizing them as national legends even other nations were hailing them as well.

To sum it up further, both of them were also a married couple. The romance started when Sabrira won against Blanko in a international tournament at Brazil. At first, both of them were cold rivals with each other but as time goes on, their initial friendship turned to affection that later blossomed to intense love.

Then one day, something changes their lives.

...

On a rainy day at Zootopia International Airport, Blanko was gazing the view. Sabrira then appeared with a pair of cups filled with warm cocoa.

"Hey, sweetness." Sabrina called.

"Oh!" Blanko startled in surprise. "You startled me, Sabrira."

"Sorry, my dear." Sabrira apologized in a soft voice. "Are you feeling a bit tired in waiting for the flight?"

"Oh, yes." Blanko replied as he took the cup from Sabrira. He took a few sips from the cup. "We been waiting here in the airport terminal for about an hour now."

"At least the coffee shop was still open today." Sabrira said.

As Sabrira took a sip, the airport's PA system then sounded.

"Zootopian Airways Flight 12017, boarding in progress on Gate 11."

The announcement jolted the two predators.

"Crap!" Blanko swears in disbelief. "That's our flight, Sabrira."

"I know, Blanko." Sabrira responded.

Blanko grabbed his personal luggage while Sabrira carried her own. Both of them hurriedly went to the designated gate and as they do, they were surprised that both of them will be boarding a DHC-5D Buffalo painted in a usual orange-yellow livery.

"That must be it." Blanko said.

Both of them entered the gate. As the couple boarded the plane, a tiger dressed in a flight attendant uniform greeted them.

"Ah. Greetings, guys." The tiger greeted.

"Greetings to you too." Blanko replied.

"What's shaking, bacon?" Sabrira added.

Blanko showed him the passports.

"Good thing the two VIPs have finally catch up with this flight today." The tiger flight attendant remarked.

"Huh?" Blanko pondered.

"Is something the matter?" Sabrira asked.

"The captain of the plane wanted to call off the flight due to the bad weather but don't worry about that, great Sabrira." The tiger reassured. "The bad news were already rectified a moment ago."

Blanko let out a sigh of relief.

"I though our flight to our sports tournament in Hawaii will be canceled, dude." Blanko said.

"At least we got the chance, sweetheart." Sabrira added.

"Yep." Blanko responded with a smile.

The tiger flight attendant escorted the couple to their special seats. There were some other passengers on board and most of them were Zootopians and humans sports athletes with different nationalities. Blanko and Sabrira were both seated in a row of seats that were located just adjacent to the right wing. After they placed their luggage on the secured spots above them, they sat down on the relaxing seats.

"Good thing we finally got seated in this flight, Sabrira." Blanko said. "We'll be certainly departing for Hawaii soon."

"You could say that again, stud." Sabrira replied with a grin.

A male tiger dressed in a football uniform approached them with a pen, a sheet of paper and a visible excitement on his face.

"Oh my God! You must be the renowned runners Blanko Mancara and Sabrira Growlers!" The tiger fan realized. "Please can I get your autographs, guys?"

Both Blanko and Sabrira exchanged grins and shrugged their shoulders.

"We'll do, dude." Blanko replied with a smile.

"Thanks a lot, guys!" The tiger thanked.

By 4:30 PM, the gate was closed. Soon, the plane's engines started. With the seatbelt sign on, the occupants fasten their seatbelts. Despite the rain, the flight finally commenced.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your Captain speaking. We may be a little late behind schedule for our flight from Zootopia to Honolulu, Hawaii. We apologize for the delay but we're reassuring all that everything was being set back to normal since the flight is now starting. For now, have a great day today."

Blanko started to read a few safety rules on the chart that he found under his seat while Sabrira watches on. Just 5 minutes past 4:30 PM, Zootopian Airway Flight 12017 finally departed from Zootopia International Airport on route to Honolulu, Hawaii.

The flight is indeed on.


	2. Chapter 2

_By 6:25 PM, Blanko and Sabrira noticed that their trip was taking a bit more longer to arrive at Hawaii. Both of them didn't care about that much but they didn't know that the plane they were riding on was actually off-course._

* * *

Blanko was snoozing on his seat while Sabrira kept on reading the magazine that she brought. The snow leopard let out a sigh and she places the magazine on the side of her seat. Her realization kicked in when she took a glimpse on her wristwatch. Sabrira then woke Blanko up.

"Blanko, wake up." Sabrira said.

"Wha?" Blanko groaned. "What's wrong, Sabrira?"

"It's now 6:25 PM." Sabrira reminded.

"Really?" Blanko replied weakly before yawning. "What's the concern?"

"We should be landing in Hawaii by now." Sabrira replied.

"Yeah?" Blanko added.

"We're been in the air for more than 2 hours." Sabrira said.

"Maybe the pilots were so busy for landing, Sabrira." Blanko replied. "Let's them be."

Blanko undone his seatbelt and he stood up.

"Where are you going?" Sabrira asked.

"I'm going to wash myself up." Blanko replied.

Sabrira nodded. The black panther then makes his way to the rear part of the plane. There was a lioness dressed in uniform sitting on her jump-seat. Beside her was a counter full of damp cleansing wipes and other first aid essentials.

"Excuse me, Miss." Blanko said.

"Yes?" The lioness responded. "Can I help you?"

"Can I have some cleansing wipes, please?" Blanko requested. "My whiskers were quite dry."

"No problem." The attendant replied. She took a few wipes from the counter and gave it to Blanko. "Here you go, Sir."

"Thanks." Blanko replied with a thanks.

He then wiped it on his face and whiskers.

"Umm...Can I ask you something as well?" Blanko asked.

"Sure thing." The lioness replied. "What is it?"

"My mate says we're a bit late for our arrival in Hawaii." Blanko said. "She even says that we're flying for than 2 hours."

The lioness perked up.

"Oh, yes. I forgot to announce about that." The lioness realized.

"Announce?" Blanko pondered.

"Yes, Sir." The lioness replied. "The pilots reminded the crew members not a long while ago that we're a bit lost in the skies."

"That's quite awful to hear that." Blanko said.

"I know. In fact, this plane hasn't been checked for maintenance prior to this flight from Zootopia to Hawaii." The attendant explained.

Blanko was surprised to hear that. The lioness was concerned to see his face changing in emotion.

"It might seems to be scary but don't worry about this." she reassured. "The pilots will be handling this."

Blanko nodded.

"I should be returning to my seat then." Blanko said.

The lioness nodded as Blanko returned to Sabrira. Upon returning to his seat, Sabrira noticed his changing look on his face.

"Blanko?" Sabrira noticed. "Are you ok?"

"You're telling me the truth, Sabrira." Blanko said.

"Huh?" Sabrira pondered. "What are you saying?"

"We're lost." Blanko replied. "The lioness back there told me that we're lost."

Sabrira was a bit surprised to hear that yet still, she forced herself to stay calm.

"So that's explains my confusion of why were still flying in the skies a bit more longer than expected." Sabrira concluded.

"It is, Sweetheart." Blanko remarked.

He then sat down and buckled his seatbelt before placing his paw on Sabrira's right paw.

"I hope this problem will end later." Blanko remarked.

"Calm down, Sweetie." Sabrira reassured. "Let's forget about the problem for now."

Blanko sighed and nodded.


	3. Chapter 3

_As the couple awaits for the problem to be troubleshooted, disaster strikes._

* * *

When the clock ticks by, the plane was still in flight. As Blanko and Sabrira remained at their seats, impatience started to appear on the faces of the other passengers. Others were kept checking on their wristwatches or out of the windows. The lioness flight attendant took a few papers and she grabbed the PA to make an announcement.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we're sorry for the inconvenience. Our flight from Zootopia to Hawaii was a bit off course due to some technical problems but we'll line up to Honolulu as soon as possible, everyone."

The passengers groaned with some frustrated remarks. The revered black panther and snow leopard athletes just watched the scenes unfold.

"This inconvenience scares me, Blanko." Sabrira said, timidly.

"Don't worry about that, Sweetheart." Blanko reassures her.

"I wish these problems will end soon." Sabrira replied.

As he reassures Sabrira's initial discomfort to the brewing tension, Blanko could hear something from the outside.

"What was that?" Blanko reacted.

He then looks out the window and despite the darkness outside, Blanko saw the right propeller started to stall. Other passengers also watched the stalling engine from their seats. Panic started to flood the cabin.

"The engines stalling!"

"We're running on fumes!"

The stalling sounds continued as panic fanned the stress even more. Blanko grabbed Sabrira's paw very tightly.

"This can't be it." Blanko muttered on.

"B-Blanko." Sabrira stammered timidly.

The cabin lights started to flicker on and off. General panic overwhelmed the passengers. As the problem unfolded further, Blanko and Sabrira tightened their seatbelts even more.

"Great Zootopia!" Blanko remarked. "This can't be true!"

"Blanko, I'm getting really scared in here." Sabrira whined.

"Sabrira." Blanko said. "No matter what will happen next, I'm always here for you."

As she says that, the cabin lights finally failed. The engine sounds also stopped. The horror was evident that the plane finally ran out of fuel and it was certain that they would not gonna make it to Honolulu. The panic was indescribable as most of the Zootopian passengers started screaming for help. Others were crying in tears. Blanko then noticed Sabrira sobbing in fear.

"Blanko, I don't wanna die!" Sabrira feared.

The black panther tried to reassured her but to no avail. The cabin started to shift intensely as the plane began to descend from the sky. Since the plane lost both engines, all lights were out. Blanko kept looking out of the window to see something in the darkness while his paw was still holding tightly on Sabrira's paw.

Unknown to Blanko and Sabrira or to the others that the plane was gliding on an unknown land. Even though the gliding DHC-5 Buffalo was over land, the stricken plane was far from the nearest airport.

As the disaster continued, Blanko then heard the sound of hitting the trees.

"Sabrira!" Blanko called. "Hang on!"

Both of them closed their eyes before hell broke loose.


	4. Chapter 4

_The disaster was far from over as the plane carrying Blanko and Sabrira finally executed a rough belly landing in the dense jungles of Southeastern Splerai'ia. The survivors though they survived the ordeal but all the others will be facing the risks soon after._

* * *

Despite being knocked out by the rough landing, Blanko finally regained consciousness. The cabin was wrecked up with some passenger seats scattered around along with the piles of luggage and other things that came off during the belly landing. Sounds of other passengers groaning and moaning in pain could be heard as well with the sound of the jungle surroundings.

"We're grounded at last." Blanko said.

He then jolted when someone tightened his left paw. When Blanko turned his head, he saw a bleeding Sabrira. Even though the snow leopard was seated with her seatbelt fastened tightly, the poor feline suffered harsh internal injuries since the rough landing caused the seats to flung forward. Sabrira has a bleeding forehead and her body was pinned by other unoccupied seats.

"B-Blanko." Sabrira weakly called. "H-H-Help me."

Blanko was awe-struck to the sight of her.

"Sabrira!" Blanko reacted.

Blanko began to remove the debris that crushed his beloved mate.

"Hold on!" Blanko shouted. "I'm coming!"

With the airline seats removed, the black panther dragged Sabrira out. Aside from the bleeding gash on her forehead, Sabrira's clothes was splashed with fresh blood.

"My God!" Blanko swears in disbelief. "You're hurt, Sabrira!"

Blanko extended his claws and he sliced away the loose parts of the snow leopard's dress. As he removed it, Blanko was shocked to see a bleeding wound on her stomach. In a rush of adrenaline, Blanko checked his pockets and he grabbed a clean handkerchief. Sabrira groaned as Blanko applied pressure on her stomach wound.

"Ah!" Sabrira moaned. "T-That hurts."

"I'm sorry, Sabrira but I need to cover that wound there." Blanko replied compassionately. "You're losing a lot of blood."

Sabrira grabbed his paw.

"Please don't leave me here." Sabrira weakly pleaded.

"I know, Sabrira but I need to find some help." Blanko replied.

A dazed tiger then appeared from the wreckage. He shook his head before he noticed Blanko. He then approached to him.

"Dude, are you ok?" The young tiger asked.

"I'm fine, man but my mate was seriously injured." Blanko replied back.

The tiger was shocked to see Sabrira's condition.

"Oh crap!" The tiger responded. "She is!"

The young tiger then assisted Sabrira.

"Your mate was losing blood fast." The tiger athlete said. "I need a bandage."

"I don't know what to do." Blanko panicked.

"I'll handle your girl, man." The tiger reassured. "Go find some first aid essentials in the wreckage while I'll help her here."

Blanko nodded. He then returned to the DHC-5 Buffalo wreckage to find some first aid. Due to the rough belly landing, the impact sheared away the tail and wings while the front part of the plane rested on its right side. As he ventured further, Blanko saw the other dead passengers that were crushed on the seats or laid on their backs. The sight disgusted the black panther and even with these, he continued on searching. Luckily, he found his luggage and some first aid essentials that was scattered on the floor. When Blanko grabbed the needed items, he saw the lioness, alive and still strapped in her jump seat. Her paws were pinned by the counter.

"Excuse me, Sir." The lioness called. "Can you please free my paws?"

"Sure thing." Blanko replied.

Blanko then freed the lioness' trapped paws. The flight attendant then unbuckled from her seat.

"I can't believe that pilots managed to execute a belly landing in the jungle." The lioness remarked.

"Let's focus about that later on." Blanko said. "For right now, I need to save my mate outside."

"What happened?!" The lioness reacted.

"She's gravely injured." Blanko explained.

Both Blanko and the lioness hurried back outside to join in with Sabrira and the young tiger. With a sterile medical compress, he removed the handkerchief and applied a good press on the wound with it. The snow leopard groaned as the tiger helped her by bandaging the gash on her forehead.

"Her injuries were not that threatening but she still needs medical attention." The tiger said.

"I hope the rescuers will find us sooner or later to that." The lioness hoped for the best.

Blanko caressed Sabrira with his paws.

"You're gonna be fine, Sabrira." Blanko reassured. "Please stay strong."

As the groaning continued, the night grew further in the jungle. With that, the remaining survivors sheltered themselves in the wrecked DHC-5 Buffalo, hoping that rescue will be coming soon.


	5. Chapter 5

_After spending a day in the crash site and witnessing the death of five more mortally wounded survivors, Blanko and the others were getting pressured and desperate than ever but those problems are going to be solved._

* * *

The next day, the remaining survivors woke up and some of them were horrified that there were a few more mortally wounded survivors that had just died right before their eyes. While Blanko helped Sabrira in assessing her harsh internal injuries, the black jaguar saw the tiger and the lioness flight attendant dragging the newly died survivors.

"Hey!" Blanko called. "What are you guys doing?"

"We're dragging these fellows out of the wreckage." The tiger replied.

"Why?" Blanko asked.

"They're dead." The lioness answered.

"What?!" Blanko exclaimed. "You both must be serious."

"No time to explain more, man." The tiger said. "For right now, we have 12 dead and 18 survivors left."

As the duo continued on, Sabrira groaned. Blanko approached her.

"Sabrira." Blanko said.

The snow leopard tried to open her eyes slightly.

"B-Blanko." Sabrira called. "W-Water, please."

"Ok, Sabrira." Blanko replied. "I'll be right back."

Blanko then went out of the wrecked DHC-5 Buffalo and he searched for something in the luggage that was piled on the grass. The tiger and the lioness then returned.

"What are you looking in there, dude?" The tiger asked.

"I'm looking for any canteens or containers of drinking water, man." Blanko replied. "My mate's thirsty."

"Here, take this." The lioness flight attendant said as she handed the dented water canteen that she found.

"Thanks." Blanko gratefully replied. "Where did you get this?"

"I found that in the pilot's bag." The lioness replied.

"Wait a second there." Blanko realized. "How's the remaining crew?"

"Of the crew on board, only me, my partner and the pilot survived." The lioness answered sadly. "The radio operator and the extra flight attendant were both dead in the crash."

"My coach was dead as well." The tiger added. "He was thrown forward and got crushed by the seats."

"I'm sorry to hear all of that, guys but we'll mourn them for later." Blanko sympathetically responded. "Let's focus on our survival in here first."

The duo agreed. The group then disbanded when Blanko returned to Sabrira and the others went to the nose of the plane. With the dented canteen on his paws, he slowly administered Sabrira some sips of water.

"Don't worry, Sabrira." Blanko reassured. "I'm still here for you."

Sabrira grabbed hold his paws.

"B-Blanko." She feebly said. "When help w-will arrive to save u-us?"

"Help will be here soon." Blanko replied. "Just hold a bit more longer."

"O-Okay, Blanko." Sabrira weakly replied back.

...

The tiger athlete was helping in wrapping the lioness' partner lacerated leg.

"I hope his wound wouldn't get infected or something." The tiger feared.

"Don't worry about me, dude." The lioness' male tiger flight attendant replied. "I'm strong as a ox."

"Yeah, right." The lioness remarked with a grin.

Blanko then appeared.

"How's your mate, sir?" The lioness asked.

"She's weak, girl." Blanko replied. "Her voice started to be drowned by her injuries."

"Damn." The tiger flight attendant swears. "I hate to hear that from you."

"Me either." The tiger athlete added.

Blanko sat on the grass.

"We have spent a day in the forest and there's still no sign of rescue yet." Blanko said.

"A few fit survivors tried to search for help out in the forest but it's ended futile." The lioness replied. "The forest was so vast that the party might risk themselves in getting lost."

Blanko places his paws on his face.

"I wish this hell would end soon." Blanko hoped.

Right after saying that, he perked up when he heard a faint sound of a low flying plane from a distance. The other trio noticed the sound as well and all of them were jubilant.

"It's a plane!" The tiger athlete shouted.

"That must be a search party!" The lioness added.

As their mood started to improved, they could then saw a vintage biplane flying low and slow near to the treeline. Blanko finally saw it with his own eyes.

"It is really a search party, guys!" Blanko hollered.

"Signal it!" The tiger flight attendant shouted in response.

Blanko then grabbed a discarded piece of colored cloth that was on the grass and he waved it on the flying plane. Other survivors tried to direct it's attention by waving their hands or by calling it on the top of their lungs. Before the biplane disappeared from the survivors' sight, the plane dipped its wings that gave Blanko and the others a certain signal that they have been spotted.

"He dipped his wings, guys!" Blanko realized. "He had dipped his wings!"

"We're going to be saved!" The tiger athlete added. "We're gonna live!"

Blanko and the other survivors celebrated. In tears of joy, he rushed back to Sabrira.

"Sabrira." Blanko called.

"W-What, Blanko?" Sabrira responded weakly.

"We're spotted by a plane, Sabrira." Blanko replied joyfully. "We're going to be saved from this hellish ordeal!"

The good news gives the snow leopard a distinct smile.

"That's good, Blanko." Sabrira remarked happily. "That's good."

Tears started to leaked from her eyes. Blanko then wiped it away with his paws.

"It's gonna be okay, Sabrira." Blanko reassured. "We're all going to be okay."

Sabrira nodded as the other survivors celebrated outside.


End file.
